Welcome

Welcome to the Parents Planning Guide to staying at Rady Children's Hopsital

Over the last couple of months I've spent over 10 weeks staying in the hospital with my child. I've learned a few tips and tricks over that time and decided to share them with this blog. I hope this helps you navigate the hospital and that your stay is short and effective.

Sleeping On The Couch

The single rooms have a couch that can be unfolded and slept on. Here's a few tips I've learned over the many weeks I've slept on one.

• ProTip: The back to the sofa can be unfolded and slept on. If you do so, as intended, you'll find that it slopes gently towards the outside of the sofa. This can be a bit unsettling and make you feel like you're going to fall on the floor. To counteract that angle, flip the cushion around before unfolding. i.e. take the left side of the cushion and put it on the right side. After you unfold it, it will feel flatter, and you won't get that feeling you're going to fall.
• My "well duhhh" tip: After spending about 8 weeks in the hospital, I finally figured out I should put a fitted sheet around the cushion. I kept putting a flat sheet on top, which obviously slides all around. The fitted sheet rocked my world. OMG. lol. I'm so dumb, I know.
• Bring a pillow from home. The ones the hospital provides are not that great.
• Bring a comforter from home. Bringing a piece of home to the hospital will give you comfort at night.

Parking

Nothing annoys me more than having to pay for parking at a hospital. As if you haven't gone through enough already.

If you know you'll be there for multiple days, you can get a Weekly Parking pass. Ask the attendant at the parking garage booth. I'm not sure how much it is.

There's no parking attendant on the weekends - parking is free.

There's no parking attendant after 8pm on weekdays - parking is free

If you have a handicap placard, parking is free. They'll ask for your placard and then write the number down. You can go in-out multiple times in a day. It's still free.

The Hospital's Best Kept Secret

The best kept secret at the hospital is......

Subway has Ice Cream Cones!

Seriously. Who knew? How is that even possible with it being a franchise? I don't know!?

There's so many mysteries to it I can't explain. I have no explanation.

All I know is that after a stressful day/s of staying in the hospital, sneaking out at night to get ice cream after your kid has finally fallen asleep is one of life's simple pleasures. Yes I know I'm stress eating. But whatever. You've made it through another day. Just say yes to ice cream.

Soft Serve is $1.50 per cone or cup. If you do the cup, you get more ice cream, plus you can throw the cone on top. :)

Ronald McDonald House

The Ronald McDonald House is on the top floor of the parking garage, directly east of the main hospital.

If you have a green wristband indicating you're the parent to a patient, you can go to the Ronald McDonald house for a free meal, snack, shower, or just take a break.

Meals
Meals are served three times a day.

Breakfast 7am-8:30am
Lunch 12-1:30
Dinner 6-7:30

Breakfast is typically a continental breakfast with pastries, frozen breakfast sandwiches (there's microwaves that you can use to heat up), frozen breakfast burritos, cereal, and oatmeal. There's usually some sort of fruit and usually some yogurt. Occasionally, there will be a hot meal (scrambled eggs, pancakes, etc). There's also occasionally some Mexican breakfast foods.

Lunch and Dinner are typically served by a volunteer organization such as a church, girl scouts, etc. Once I went for lunch and had pizza (from Costco) along with an ice cream bar served by a local girl scout troop.

Getting In
When you get there, you'll have to hit a buzzer to be let in. You'll then need to show your wristband to the volunteers at the front counter. They'll ask you to sign your name and check off what you're there for: meal, shower, etc. They'll put a colored sticker on your wristband indicating that you've checked in for the day.

The inside is similar to a hotel

Hot Tip: Across from the check in desk, they have copies of the San Diego Union Tribune. Don't be shy. Go ahead and take one. You can catch up on the news back in the hospital room. They also sometimes have coupons for local places.

The patio is a good place for siblings to get a break and run around

Showers
If you need a quick shower, you can get one at the Ronald McDonald House. Let them know when you check in, and they will show you where to go. They'll also provide a towel. I would recommend bringing in your own towels, just because the ones they have are so small. They're typical hotel towels.

The showers are like a typical hotel bathroom. They lock so you have the place to yourself. They have a shower, toilet and sink. They also have travel size shampoo and soap. They don't have shaving supplies, so make sure you bring that with you if needed.

Rooms
If your child is in for a long term illness, you're far away from home or have some other hardship, you might qualifty to get a room for your family to stay in. The hospital has social workers who can help determine if you qualify. I don't know the exact requirements. The rooms are like a typical hotel room.

Massages

There's a table near the check in counter that has a sign up sheet for free massages. They only happen on certain days.

Vending Machines

There are vending machines spread throughout the facility. Here's the spots I've seen them.

• ER waiting room (northern wall, near the restrooms)
• ICU waiting room
• Cardiac wing waiting room
• Outside the Doctor's lounge (near the cafeteria)
• In 3-East

Tip: The vending machines with the best variety and quality are the ones outside the Doctor's Lounge There you can find drinks, chips, snacks and cereal. You can even get a microwavable meal.

The vending machines outside the Doctor's Lounge are deluxe

Television

The television stations are funky. They consist of a three or four digit numerical code. I highly recommend you write down your child's favorite channels on the whiteboard in your room. It will save you the trouble of having to look it up all the time. Either way, you'll probably have 69-47 and 59-27 stuck in your brain after a long visit.

Ordering Food

When you're staying with your child, you can order them food as well as for yourself. Once ordered, the food is supposed to arrive within 45 minutes. If you order for your child and yourself at the same time, it won't necessarily arrive at the same time. They might prioritize the patient's orders, so your food may arrive later.

Hours: 7am-12:30am
Extension: 5619 or 858-576-1700 x 5619 if calling from your cell phone.

If you order food for yourself, they'll ask you for a credit card to pay for it. The patients food is already taken care of.

Tips:

• You can order food ahead of time, so if you want to get breakfast as early as possible (7:45am), order it the night before.
• There are two menus: One for the patients, and one for the family. There are some differences to them (other than the fact the family one lists prices), but patients and family can order from either menu.
• Secret Menu: There are some items that you can order that aren't listed on either menu. For instance you can order a strawberry-banana smoothie. 
• You can pick up food at the cafeteria for your child. Note: This only works if your child is on a regular diet, but you can call extension 5619 and tell them you want to do "Cafe Select". They will give you a monetary value that you can go and spend at the cafeteria. This is great for items that are only found in the cafeteria (Make-your-own-waffles!) or if you just want to ensure that the food arrives as fast as possible.

Who doesn't love make-your-own waffles?

• You can order your patient breakfast for dinner! Because who doesn't want pancakes for dinner. Not sure if this is true for family members ordering.
• Chef's Selections: The chef sometimes has several specialty items that are only available for a given month. I've seen them have: Carrot pancakes, apple cobbler, banans foster. When you order food, you can ask them if they have any chef specialties for the month.
• Some food and drinks they keep on the floor and don't need to be ordered via phone. Apple juice, cranberry juice, orange juice, milk, cereal and saltines can be obtained via a quick call to the nurses station.
• Bring stuff in: I'm not sure what the official hospital policy is, but we were able to bring in yogurt drinks and have them kept in a fridge on the floor. Just ask your nurse if that option is available.

Patient Menu